Handle or grip surface



Jan. 9,1923,

A E LARD HANDLE ORGRIP'SURFACE.

FILED JAN. 27, 1921.

flwmmw objections Patented darn... ti

" W racts ALLAN n. inen or wasrrrno'ron, nrsrnror or COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR ro rrrn trnraLLro sr-rarr corrrranr, or; wrnrrrneron, DELAWARE, a conroaa- TION 01E DELAWARE.

HANDLE on care straracn.

Application filed January 27, 1921. Serial No. 140,373.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, ALLAN E. LARD, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at VVashington, in the District of-C0lumbia, have invented certain new and useful llmprovements in Handles or Grip Surfacesmfwhich the following is a specification.

This invention pertains to handles/or in connection with sporting goods .such as golf clubs, tennis racquets, and the like,

though the same is applicable for employ ment in conjunction with tool handles, steer-- vital factors, the former being ofparticular f moment in that the grip producing material or body must not exceed a given welght,

or, in other-words, must be within such linoits as not to throw theclub out ofbalance.

Leather in strip form, wound about the shaft, is most commonly employed but such material is open to several objections, among which may be mentioned relatively high cost, slickingf by reason of use, and varia-' tion of feel due to several causes, the primary one of which is the weather. Rubber has also been employed as a gripsurface (see Letters Patent No. 1,017,565, granted to me under date of February 3, 1912). The grip surface or wrapping asset forth in said patent was placed about the shaft under tension, a somewhat-tedious and troublesome operation furthermore, such tensioned rubber would break, sometimes shortly after application, unless the rubber employed was of high grade, and consequently was expen sive. Again, when kept down within weight limitations the grip would .be of relatively short life inasmuch as thestock did not possess sufficient strength when under proper tensioning and would wear out under strain while in use.

' The present structure obviates all these and while being a cheaper than leather is as easy of application and as durable in use, presenting a grip, the surface of which IGIIIQLHIS the same as to feel and texture durlng 1ts life.

in drawings, wl1ere1n,

form of wrapping or, grip element;

rip b surfaces designed more partlcularly for use m not essential.

materially The structure is shown in theaccompany Fig.1 is a plan view of the preferred grip shown in my patent above referred to,

Figs. 2, 3 and 4:, cross sections on the lines 1l[-l[ll, IlUL-JH andclllL-TV, respectively, of Fig. 1; V p Flg. 5 a side View or edge elevation;

Figs. 6 and 7 plan views showing the in vention as applied to narrower strips;

. Fig. 8 a perspective View of a still further modification; and

F ig. 9 a side elevation of a shaft or handle'having. a gripelement, as in Fig. 1, ap-

plied thereto.

The grip element, Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive, and 9, may be said to comprise a thin tough fabric backin 1 and an overlayof rubber 2. The fabric will be frictioned, as is well understood by those skilled inthe rubber art,

and the rubber body imposed thereon, the two elements being placed in suitable molds and subjected to vulcanization.

' The rubber body will preferably be provided With a series of longitudinally disposed rounded ribs 3, the ribs being of approximately. the same height throughout the major' JOltlOIl of the length of the grip strip. djacent one end of the strip, say at a distance of approximately 3 inches from the end, the ribs taper down in height, as at 4, and gradually merge into a relatively thin section 5. The cloth or fabric 1 extends .beyond the end of the thin section for a slight distance. .lhn the broader aspect of the invention, however, the tapering of the ribs, the flat section and the fabric extensiomare When a strip such as just outlined is wrapped about the shaft, designated by 6, or upon the listing or other ,suitable underlay 7, if the same be employed, it will be seen that the ribs and the grooves or depressions formed between the-adjacent ribs stand at'a relatively sharp angle to the axis of the shaft. This is a point of manifest advantage in the gripping of the club by the user, particularly with, reference to that hand which is at the upper end of the club, the fingers crossing the ribs at substantially right angles and ensuring a hold which would otherwise not inhere.

. 1n the application of the grip strip to the shaft or handle, it is not necessary that the .qsame be placed'under tension other than that suflicient to cause it to closely adhere and conform to the surface to which it is applied. Tn this it is different from the wherein the strip was placed under more or less tension and held under tension. With the present form, therefore, the life of the grip is materially lengthened and the'bo'dy may be lighter and conform to the require-,

. ments ofweight necessarily employed in building up a golf club The ,present'construction moreover, lends itself to a rapid gripstrip to the club or handle.

While I prefer to make the strip ofa. width of approximately an inch and a quarter, with three ribs thereon, this forthe.

reason that it produces the angularity above referred to, and can be applied more rapidly, 1t is-conceivable that the strip may be'formed with only two ribs,'or say seven-eighthsv of an inch wide, as shown in Fig. 6, or of a single strip approximately seven-sixteenths of an inch in width, having a single .rib thereon extendingfrom edge to edge, as in Fig. 7.

In Fig. 8 a still further modification of the invention is shown wherein a fabric backing, as 1, is employed in conjunction withan overlay of rubber, rounded or. substantially round in cross section. the rubber strip-preferably tapering toward the end as under the other constructions, and gradually merging into the fabric underlay. The securing of the grip surface Imay be done with or without cement in any approved Inanner,'as by tacking the upper end at the l beginning of the winding thereof, and likewise tacking the lower end, after whichsuitable windings, as 8 and9, may be employed, as usual, in the application of calf grips or the like. i

The fact that the rubber is not placed under tension leaves the rubber more or less pliable, depending upon the nature of the rubber and the amount of cure to which it is subjected, thereby producing a grip surface which will conform and yield to the hand slightly and ensures non-slippage of the club or other implement, .to which it maybe applied, when in use.

While I have shown and d scribed the grip strip as tapering in height toward. one

end, it 1s to be understood that such construction is not essential and the strip or the ribs thereon maybe of the same thick- HGSS tlIIOIfglIOUt. The-tapering, however, tends to minimize the weight and to produce afinish at the lower end of the grip when applied to a golf club which merges into the body of the club. So, too, in the broader aspect of the inventionthe ribbed construction is not essential. v

While the grip s primarily designed for "1. In combination with a golf shaft; a

grip surface therefor wound spirally about the shaft, said surface being producedby a strip imposed thereon, said strip' being formedof rubber vulcanized to a'fabric'underlay, the exposed face of the rubber having. a plurality of ribs extending lon gitudinally of the strip whereby when the strip-is positioned they stand at a relatively sharp angle to the axis of the shaft.

- 2. As a new article of manufacture, a grip surface comprising a strip of fabric having a layer of rubber imposed and vulcanized thereon, the exposed surface where of is ribbed, the outermost edges of the outermost ribs being substantially coincident with the edges of the fabric strip.

3. As a new article of manufacture a grip surface comprising a strip of fabric having a layer of rubber.vulcanized to one face thereof. the exposed face of the rubber having at least one rib extending longitudinally of the strip, the rib decreasing in height toward one end of the strip.

4. As a new article of manufacture a grip surface comprising a strip of fabric having a layer of rubbervulcanized to one face thereof, the exposed face of the rubber having at least one rib extending longitudinally of the strip, the rib decreasing in height toward one end of the strip and merging into a flat relatively thin section.

, Asa new article of manufacture, a grip strip adapted to be wound spirally about a handle or shaft, said strip having a longitudinally ribbed surface, the ribs tapering in height toward one end of the strip.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a grip strip having a plurality of rounded ribs oxtapering in height toward one end of-the strip and the outermost edges of the outer- .most ribs being substantially coincidentwith the edges of the strip.

7. As anew article of manufacture, a grip surface comprising a strip of fabric having a'layer of rubber vulcanized to one face thereof, the exposed face of the rubber havingat least one rounded projection extend- ALLAN E. LARD.

tending longitudinally thereof, said ribs 

